Thanks to its guards, Lehigh rallies late past Navy

McKnight, Schaefer combine for 30 points, 13 assists, and only one turnover.

Mackey McKnight drives the ball towards the basket during the game against… (JUSTIN LAFLEUR, LEHIGH…)

February 19, 2014|By Tom Housenick, Of The Morning Call

Navy coach Ed DeChellis called a timeout with 1 minute, 48 seconds left in Wednesday's game at Lehigh.

His designed play unfolded as he had hoped. The only problem was that the ball was closer to those on press row than shooter Zach Fong.

That is how most of the last 2:52 played out for the Midshipmen.

It is why Lehigh is in a battle for a top-four finish in the Patriot League and Navy can expect a first-round road game as a No. 9 or No. 10 seed.

The Mountain Hawks scored the game's last 11 points to rally past the Midshipmen with stellar play late for a second time this season.

Senior Mackey McKnight and junior Corey Schaefer, two experienced guards, made plays and put their teammates in position to do the same during that closing stretch of a 72-65 victory at Stabler Arena.

Navy, without starting point guard Tilman Dunbar since the 11th game of the season because of a non-basketball suspension, is lacking that crucial leadership and point guard play.

"Point guard play has been really, really hard this year since we lost Dunbar," DeChellis said. "Credit Mackey McKnight. He made plays, a senior point guard who got guys the ball.

"We came down and turned the ball over. We run a set play and throw it over the kid's head out of bounds."

Navy (9-17 overall, 4-11 Patriot League) committed three turnovers and got one shot off in the final 2:15.

Lehigh (14-14, 7-8) got a short jumper from Jesse Chuku, two Schaefer free throws and McKnight's defensive rebound and subsequent two free throws to put the game away.

McKnight made two more freebies for the final score.

Navy missed six of 12 from the charity stripe for the game.

The Mountain Hawks' offensive efficiency was made possible by an attitude adjustment on defense. They allowed the Midshipmen to shoot a season-high 54.9 percent, 65.4 percent in the first half.

But Lehigh buckled down when it counted.

"Defense is going to be the thing that is the foundation if we are to be able to contend for a championship," Hawks coach Brett Reed said. "Whether it's to make a postseason run or close out the regular season on a run, we have to play with a higher sense of urgency and energy, better communication and more pressure on the basketball."

For large chunks of the game, Lehigh allowed Navy to run its offense. The Mountain Hawks went under screens on shooters, overcommitted in the lane in an attempt to block a shot, etc.

Sophomore Will Kelly had a career-high 19 points, including three dunks, and equaled his career high with 10 rebounds for Navy.

All of that happened, however, in the game's first 36 minutes.

"We told our [center] not to overcommit, to not go too high up and the guards had to get into the ballhandlers more so [Navy's guards] weren't so comfortable making those passes," Schaefer said. "It wasn't a scheme thing. We just needed to be more aggressive."

Reed's halftime speech about defensive effort and intensity worked in the first few minutes of the second half.

After Navy scored 12 in a row to take a 41-34 lead at the break, Lehigh regained a 50-49 advantage on a Chuku trey.

Kelly and Zach Fong (12 points) kept Navy in the hunt. Brandon Venturini's steal and layup gave the Mids a three-point cushion at the 4:18 mark. His free throw with 2:52 left Navy up by four.

But Tim Kempton's 3-point play with 2:29 left started Lehigh's comeback.

The freshman center fouled out on the next play, but the Mids missed the front end of a one-and-one. That led to Chuku's go-ahead 10-footer.

It also led to another late-game breakdown for Navy, which is 4-6 in games decided by fewer than 10 points. Lehigh is 10-7 in similar situations.

"It's what we've done. It's who we are," DeChellis said. "We just have to work through it."

The same can be said for Lehigh's on-again, off-again defense.

Schaefer, who had 14 points combined in his last four games, had 15. McKnight also had 15 and nine assists.